Dhaka, 27 February (HS): After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, various questions are being raised in Bangladesh. The interim government of the country remains a spectator. Now, citing the lack of an official agreement, a legal notice has been issued demanding immediate stoppage of water supply from Bangladesh’s Feni river to India’s Tripura state.
According to the Dhaka Tribune newspaper, Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer Mohammad Mahmudul Hasan has recently sent a notice to the Secretary of the Ministry of Water Resources, Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and members of the Joint River Commission. It mentions the 2019 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the governments of Bangladesh and India. This MoU allows India to draw 1.82 cusecs of water from Bangladesh’s Feni River to supply water to the city of Sabroom in Tripura.
The notice claims that this MoU is not an official agreement. Also, it is not in line with Bangladesh’s constitutional requirements. According to Articles 145 and 145A of the Constitution, any agreement with a foreign state must be presented to the President and tabled in a parliamentary session.
The notice argues that the lack of reciprocity in the MoU is a violation of Bangladesh’s constitutional rights, as India is not being given any benefits in exchange for water supply. The notice expresses concern that India has been allowed to extract water using its own pumps. This is a violation of Bangladesh’s sovereignty.
Not only this, the MoU allows the withdrawal of 1.82 cusecs while India is extracting more than this amount of water. This is posing a serious environmental risk to the Feni river. The previous Awami League government has also been criticised for this MoU. The legal notice emphasises that until an official agreement is reached, water supply to Tripura should be stopped immediately and all Indian water pumps should be removed from the Feni river.
The notice demanded that if this action is not taken within 15 days, the High Court will be approached. It is noteworthy that Feni river originates from South Tripura district and enters Bangladesh through Sabroom city. Muhuri River (Little Feni) joins it from Noakhali district near its mouth.
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
